->''"I am going to the latrine, but I shall return!"''-->-- Popular WW2 joke, Pacific Theater

There is a moment where a hero, such as a soldier of an elite commando force, barely escapes a [[TheAlcatraz high security headquarters]] with the help of fellow prisoners who have risked everything to help him escape, and now have to be left behind.

However, the hero tells them just before he leaves something along the lines of, "Don't despair, because I'll be back for you all." After considerable struggle, the hero returns to his headquarters and has more adventures until he has convinced his superiors to attack the enemy's base.

So, the soldier's unit returns to the villain's hideout in force and suddenly the prisoners hear the explosions and realize the soldier has returned as promised, and he's brought an army to liberate them!

The trope name [[TropeNamer comes from]] General UsefulNotes/DouglasMacArthur's catch phrase after he fled the Philippines in 1942 when the Japanese invaded, vowing that he would come back in force to liberate the nation, which he did two years later during the Battle of Leyte with a hearty, "[[IncomingHam I have returned!]]"

See also WeWillMeetAgain.----!!Examples:

[[AC:{{Film}}]]* In ''Film/TheGiver'', Jonas promises that he'd return to the Community and Fiona. [[note]] Notable because in [[Literature/TheGiver the book]] he makes no such promise, and in the sequels he eventually settles down in (and marries someone from) another village. [[/note]]* ''Film/{{Speed}}'': At the airport, Jack manages to convince Payne to let him off the bus to arrange the ransom. The other passengers are obviously unenthusiastic at being left behind, but Jack answers "Don't worry, I won't go far." A few minutes later, the hostages look in amazement to see Jack, a cop with apparently no fear, in front of them being towed on a service cart to attempt to disarm the bomb while the bus is in motion.

[[AC:{{Literature}}]]* Happens over the course of the ''XWingSeries''. When Corran Horn is held captive in the Empire's most notorious prison, Lusankya, he befriends the old leader of the other prisoners, a man named Jan. Though Jan saves Corran's life during his escape attempt, Jan elects to stay behind and look after the others. Problem is, once Corran does come back with his squadron to free the rest of the prisoners, he discovers that the Empire had already relocated them to an unknown location - and that Jan was the legendary Rebel general at [[Film/ANewHope the Battle of Yavin]], Jan Dodonna. It takes Corran ''years'' (thanks to distractions such as [[Literature/TheCourtshipOfPrincessLeia Warlord Zsinj]] and [[TheThrawnTrilogy Grand Admiral Thrawn]]) to make good on his promise, a task that involves faked deaths, alliances with old enemies, and an obsessive clone.

[[AC:LiveActionTV]]* ''Series/StarTrekDeepSpaceNine'': In "Call to Arms", Sisko tells the people of [=DS9=], "I will not rest until I stand with you again," before leaving to fight the Dominion. He also leaves his baseball behind to let Dukat know this too. The writers have admitted it was an allusion to Douglas [=MacArthur=].** In the finale, "What You Leave Behind", [[spoiler:after ascending to the Prophets' plane of existence,]] Sisko tells Kasidy, his newlywed wife that he'll return soon.* At the end of the first episode of ''Series/BlakesSeven'', a guard on the deportation ship warns his prisoners to take a last look at Earth -- it's the last time they'll ever see it. [[RebelLeader Blake]] replies, "No, I'm coming back," with a manner that suggests he's just going on holiday. ([[spoiler:He does indeed return.]])

[[AC:Professional Wrestling]]* Wrestling/HiroshiTanahashi at the end of the Wrestling/RingOfHonor[=-=]Wrestling/{{New Japan|ProWrestling}} War Of The Worlds event after he and Wrestling/JushinThunderLiger ran off Adam Cole, who was even then taking every chance he got to ruin Michael Elgin's life. The New Japan wrestler who would pursue Cole ended up being Tanahashi's usual enemy Wrestling/AJStyles though. Tanahashi was back next year to test Elgin, who wanted a spot on the NJPW roster.

[[AC:{{Toys}}]]* ''{{BIONICLE}}'': at the end of the 2008 storyline, Mata Nui, whose body was [[GrandTheftMe stolen]] by [[BigBad Makuta]] and is now [[SoulJar sealed in the Mask of Life]], vows "I will return!"

[[AC:WesternAnimation]]* ''GIJoe: The Mass Device'': Duke made this promise to a woman who helped him escape and he came back with an assault force.* ''World's Greatest {{Superfriends}}'': {{Superman}} was trapped in the "Universe of Evil" and just got some vital help from a scientist who asks him to come back one day and free her world. Superman responds, "You can count on it!" The episode ends with the Superfriends' preparation to invade.* After the [[spoiler:failed invasion of the Fire Nation]] in ''WesternAnimation/AvatarTheLastAirbender'', Aang gives a brief speech along these lines to the soldiers that are forced to surrender before escaping on Appa. Sokka furthermore promises his father that "we won’t be apart for too long this time."* In ''WesternAnimation/RobbieTheReindeer'' ''Legend of the Lost Tribe'', Robbie vows this as he escapes from Blitzen's prison.

[[AC:{{VideoGames}}]]* Protoss Dragoons from ''VideoGame/StarCraft'' say "I have returned" when arriving on the battlefield. (Although [[WeCanRebuildHim they aren't returning from an absence]], per se...) Their counterparts in the sequels, Immortals, prefer "I return to serve", whereas their ShadowArchetype, the Stalker, says "I am here in the shadows" instead. In all cases, they're quite proud to have their role of fire support from beyond the grave.